They say Hip Hop isn’t doing anything for the youth and culture of the black community, but two of the music genre’s biggest names are joining forces with the Chicago Urban League to bring an end to this perception.

“Obviously, one of the biggest reasons our kids are going through what they’re going through is because of poverty. I was doing an event in the neighborhood and there were some kids from Englewood and I said, ‘Man, what do y’all really need? What’s gonna stop this?’ And they were like, ‘We need money. Man, if we could work.’ They want a chance,” said rapper Common. (Source: Popinlines )

Growing up on the mean streets of Chicago, Common and Kanye West are overly familiar with the plight of young black Chicago boys and girls. There are not enough opportunities to earn some money without entering the dangerous drug trade and gang culture known across the country and world in Chicago. However, they want to give the youth some alternatives.

Common, Kanye West, and the Chicago Urban League are combining forces to bring 20,000 jobs to the area specifically for Chicago’s youth. There are no details at this moment of how those jobs will be create, where they will be, or what they will consist of doing.

However, we do know they are not slated to be simple summer jobs, but something substantial that will give the youth and opportunity to earn some money, stay in school and make better choices about their future.

We do know there is a fundraising festival planned for later this year and every year to follow. They will look to raise money for the jobs and other planned programs. As you know, no plans work without money, so they are hoping to attract a few more big names from Chicago to join the festival and concerts.

The venue will be behind the Museum of Science and Industry in Hyde Park on September 20-21.

We will be following this development and keep you posted. Hopefully, this is just the start of something special in the metro Chicago area and other cities around the country where young people are given a chance to get a job, some work experience and opportunity to avoid the mean streets.

How wonderful would it be to see this new collaborative effort take place across the country and across the Hip Hop community. These brothers and sisters have so much influence, power and reach, they could really make a dramatic difference in our communities if they just decided to come together and make that difference.

It is our desire to see Common and Kanye West create a blueprint for other hip hop stars to do the same in their home cities or for them to take this nationally. We want to see them succeed in this venture more than any other they have embarked upon and UI will do our part to shed light on this initiative to keep you informed, involved, and in the know.